Administration and Finances

Hope Fellowship Christian Reformed Church operates as a non-profit organization and we are registered with the Canada Revenue Agency (#889913521RR0001). The church operates as part of the denomination (group of churches) known as the Christian Reformed Church of North America or CRC.

Hope Fellowship is governed by the Church Order of the CRC and our own Bylaws. Within those documents are found the guidelines for the leadership of our church. The various ministries of the church are overseen by a group of office bearers that include elders (Administrative and Pastoral Care, one of which being the Pastor) and deacons. The Pastor, Administrative Elders, the Pastoral Care Elders and the Deacons together form the Council of the church which, at Hope Fellowship, generally meets only to address any weighty issues affecting the church.

The Administrative Elders and the Pastor make up the Vision Leadership Board which meets monthly to receive reports and monitor the various ministries of the church. The Administrative Elders also act as the legal Board of Directors for the purposes of the CRA. The ministries of Hope Fellowship are also guided by policies that seek to provide direction while enabling each ministry to work to their maximum potential.

Hope Fellowship also takes advantage of a group of members to provide day to day leadership in each of the various ministries. We have divided our ministries into five Zones (Children, Community Life, Service & Outreach, Worship and Youth) with the remaining supporting ministries falling under an Administrative Zone.

Finances

Hope Fellowship's finances are supervised by the Vision Leadership Board. The church's 2014/15 budget is approximately $478,000 and our fiscal year starts July 1st each year. A summary of our giving to support Hope Fellowship's ministries can be found here.

Donations received during the offering each Sunday are generally directed towards a local charity or a ministry of the Christian Reformed Church. Funds can also be directed to the operating budget by using the designated blue envelopes provided on Sunday mornings. In addition, we encourage those interested in supporting the church regularly to enroll in HopePAD (pre-authorized donation) from your bank account, an Electronic Transfer of Funds (ETF) that can be set up by completing a form and forwarding it to our Bookkeeper.

Hope Fellowship is currently carrying a mortgage that was accessed to finance our recent building expansion. As of June 30, 2013 the original $1,600,000 mortgage has been reduced to $875,000. The congregation completed an initial mortgage reduction campaign in June 2011. Donations toward the mortgage can be made by marking "Building Fund" on an envelope on Sunday morning or by contacting the office. Proceeds from our rentals are also being used to directly reduce the mortgage principle.

Biblical Giving

Pastor Peter has shared a variety of finance-related sermons and a Note from the Pastor. We have compiled this information and hope it will be a blessing as you consider how to support God's work with your finances.